Serendipity
by moviemaniac32
Summary: There's so much I could be doing this summer, but I have to go to summer camp instead. Everyone keeps telling me to make the best of a bad situation. Maybe I should start listening. Nescas, Clausten.
1. Chapter 1

"Boys get your things ready, we'll be there soon". I looked out the window at what could only be described as hell.

Summer camp.

Hi. My name's Lucas. 15 years old, born and raised in Tazmily. I live with my loving parents, Flint and Hinawa, my exuberant brother, Claus, and my loyal dog boney. Unfortunately this summer, the only one I'll be seeing is Claus.

Now don't get me wrong, I like summer and I like camping, but summer camp? I don't think so.

You see, I've been to summer camp before. But never for the whole summer. At most it would be a few days and then I would spend the rest of the holiday relaxing and sleeping in, not a care in the world. I know Claus may get bored easily by a relaxing summer at home, but I'm one who prefers the quiet indoors.

But I had to go anyway. Up into the mountains in the middle of nowhere for 2 months and let me tell you _I was not happy about it_.

"Ok, we're here" I looked out at a dirt covered parking lot full of other cars with families hauling out luggage and sleeping bags. I opened my door and got out of the car, my legs thankful for the stretch from the agony of sitting for four hours. As I got out the heat hit me like a slap in the face and I had half a mind to rush back into the car, but Claus' voice stopped me, telling me to hurry up and grab my things.

I didn't have much that I brought with me. Some clothes, sundries, a few video games (well, just a gameboy advance), a pillow, sleeping bag, you know, the usual stuff. My dad had already grabbed some of our things from the trunk and began walking towards the front of the camp. I couldn't carry as much as him but I got the rest of my luggage; a pillow and a rolling suitcase, and went over to Claus who looked about ready to go have the time of his life.

"You sure are excited about this camp, huh" I asked him. He turned to me, eyes full of wonder but a face that tried to cover his excitement "I guess so. Someone told me we get to wrestle bears. I bet you're looking forward to camp bonding around the fire or something else lame" he snickered.

"You seem to be forgetting that I'm not actually good with people, Claus." I said bluntly "Also, you don't wrestle bears in summer camp. I would say that's a myth but I don't even know where you heard that."

Claus frowned and turned away.

"I'm gonna head inside and look around before the assembly starts." He declared. "At least try and make some friends while we're here ok? I know summer camp was the last thing you wanted to do this year but you might as well make the best of it." He shrugged, "You might also want to help out mom with the luggage" Claus looked behind me and I turned to see mom struggling with the rest of the stuff in the car. When I turned back to him, Claus had taken off and was already almost at the entrance.

"Come on man! At least take some of your stuff!" I shouted. He turned and winked at me before running out of view. I sighed and walked back towards the car.

"I got it mom" I told her and took some of Claus' things with the rest of my own. "Thanks dear" she replied emptying the trunk, "Lucas, I know I've said this before but you really should try and make some friends." She smiled "I'm sure that no matter how upset you are now, if you try a little bit you'll have fun." I sighed. Why was everyone so hell bent on me making friends?Truth be told I had just planned to bear through this trial with Claus alone. I sighed again and started walking towards the entrance "I guess so".

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry if the writing's bad, I'm more of an artist than a writer.


	2. Chapter 2

When we made it inside of the camp, luggage in tote, I saw a small lake in the distance along with a large stage to its left where people seemed to be gathering for opening ceremonies. I stopped for a minute to see if Claus was there but my mom pushed me forward slightly. "Don't space out honey, we have to get you registered" she smiled. I continued to walk, but with less interest, thinking that maybe if I walked slow enough I would be able to escape this place with my sanity in tact.

However as I continued to dramatically walk in slow motion I got a few stares and, thanks to my shy nature, ceased to continue out of pure embarrassment. Oh well. These things happen.

As my mother went on ahead, I made my way closer to the stage, calling to her to meet me there when she was done.

I walked along the dirt path and began to look at other campers and their families. Some were lost, others exploring, some arguing, and many simply waiting. I wasn't surprised; the opening ceremony didn't start for a while anyways.

As I made my way closer to the stage, I saw an empty bench and took an opportunity to rest my legs. I know I was in the car for four hours, but the bench was beckoning me to sit down, and honestly, who was I to deny it?

I put my luggage next to me as I sat and got out my MP3 player. I put my headphones in, music still playing from the car trip, and closed my eyes. Maybe when I opened them this would all turn out to be a bad dream.

"Hey kid". I looked up. "Sorry, but electronics aren't allowed at camp" standing in front of me was a man, no older than 25, wearing a blue shirt and a yellow bandanna as well as bright pink pants. "Sorry" I said, taking out my headphones, "I didn't realize..." I trailed off. He sat down at the end of the bench, a relaxed aura around him "It's fine. I don't care, myself. I'm just telling you so you'll be careful not to get it taken away by someone who does". He smiled, extending his hand "I'm camp counselor Duster. Nice to meet you..." "Lucas" I said, shaking his hand. He seemed like a nice guy. Not too intrusive. Slightly bad breath, though.

"If you need anything feel free to come talk to me or any of the other counselors, Lucas" he said getting up. "The ceremony's going to start soon. You might want to start making your way down." And with that, he was gone.

I put my mp3 in the pocket of my suitcase as I stood up and stretched. I knelt down to grab my things when I heard my mom call "Lucas! Lucas where are you?" "Over here, mom!"I waved. She walked up to me "Ready to go? Your father's with Claus and they're already at the stage" I nodded and we made our way towards the ceremonies.

The crowd near the stage was overwhelming and mom and I decided to try not to get close to the front, instead choosing to stand to the side. I looked around, trying to find Claus who was at the very front of the stage with dad. I realized I should probably keep an eye on him since we needed to find our cabin after this.

"Lucas, honey," my mom said with a nervous voice "sweetie, don't get mad but... we weren't able to get you in the same cabin as your brother." My eyes widened and I looked up at her in horror. Who was I going to share it with? What if they're a crazy psycho who wants to kill me?! What if I have to make awkward conversation?! All these thoughts swirled around in my head and I started to sweat. "B-but.." I stuttered "but you said—" "I know" she replied apologetically. "But these things happen and we have to learn how to manage them. It's all part of growing up. Plus it might be a good opportunity for you to make a new friend! Try to look on the bright side." She patted my shoulder. "Plus, it's not like Claus is going to be gone altogether. You can still see him every day." I felt nauseous, but admittedly calmer. How did mom always know what to say? Suddenly, a booming voice came from the stage and everyone turned their attention to the speaker. "Hey there campers and camper's families! Welcome to sunset summer camp! We'll be starting off today with a few directions on how things work around here at camp and some if the activities we'll be doing today." The speakers overly happy tone was enough to make me cringe, so I used my amazing ability, earned after years of living with Claus, to block annoying sounds out and ignored him.

I looked around the bustling crowd, wondering who in this godforsaken place I would be rooming with. Obviously it would be a boy, even if this wasn't an all boys camp they would still have separated cabins, but I just hoped that the guy I would be rooming with would at least be friendly. And maybe calm. I didn't know if I would be able to handle someone with too much energy.

As my eyes wandered through the crowd, one of the boys in the middle particularly caught my eye. He was wearing a striped shirt, similar to mine and a red baseball cap. He was messing around with some other kids and, even though I was far away, I could see that he was practically radiating confidence and cheer. The only thing I could think when I saw him was, _that kid better not be my god damned room mate._

* * *

**A/N: **All I ate today was potato chips. I'm not even fucking kidding that's all I ate


	3. Chapter 3

As the opening ceremonies finished up, mom and I met up with Claus and dad in search of our new cabins. Claus and I walked side by side behind our parents, looking around the camp. It was a nice place, green grass, the smell of the mountain, you know, nature-y. That's when Claus spoke up "Sucks that we don't get to share a cabin, huh". I nodded in response and turned my eyes towards the ground "I don't know if I'm going to be able to handle staying in a cabin with some random person. I'm sure _you'll_ be fine though". Claus snickered, "Yeah, I don't really mind who I'm stuck with. I'm only gonna be in there when I have to be. You on the other hand..." He smiled. I gave him an unamused punch on the arm "Don't rub it in you uncharismatic ginger"

We continued walking until I heard dad announce that they found Claus' cabin. I saw my brother turn and rush inside, _probably to get the top bunk_ I thought, but as I entered I saw that there were, surprisingly, 2 separate regular beds. As well as a table, an accompanying chair, 2 separate cabinets, and a door which I assumed led to a bathroom. _Living in the lap of luxury, _I thought sarcastically.

Claus began to get settled in and put his things on one of the beds when I heard mom, "Lucas, I know you want to stay with your brother but we still have to find your cabin, now." I nodded "ok" and we walked out in search of where I would be staying.

As we left, I turned around to say what felt like a final goodbye but I saw another kid enter Claus' cabin before I could get the words out. _Is that...?_ I could've sworn it was the kid from earlier but upon second look it was clear he wasn't. They looked a lot alike _maybe siblings?_ I thought as I walked away, _cool bandana, though_.

I jogged down and continued walking with mom until we were almost at the bottom of the hill. She stopped and looked around until her eyes settled on one of the cabins "That's it" she said, walking towards it. I turned towards the lodging house. The cabin, affectionately named "Cabin 28" stared me dead in the face like the final boss of a game I could never win.

We walked inside the one room house; it had the same layout as Claus' cabin, 2 beds, a bathroom, same thing. But it didn't really strike me until mom asked which bed I wanted that I would be _living_ here... for the whole summer. I had been spouting about how much I didn't want do summer camp this year, but it didn't really dawn on me until now that I would be staying for an entire summer. That's like 3 _whole_ months. Containing the panic attack that would no doubt happen at some point, I chose the bed on the left side of the cabin, up against the front wall. I put my things down and mom looked around the room, probably making sure it was up to her standards. "I wonder who your new roommate is" she said, sitting down on my bed "I hope you two get along" she smiled, "Oh you might even become best friends". _Oh god mom's getting sentimental_ "Lucas I just want you to know that even though you'll make friends here I don't want you to forget about your family. You can send us mail anytime, ok? I want you to write home at least once a week." "Ok mom" I sighed. _I love my mom but I'm not gonna forget about her and dad if I'm away for 3 months_.

"Hello?" Someone said, peering in the doorway. I looked over to see a tall blonde woman, seemingly around the same age as my mom enter the cabin with a few bags in her arms. Mom sat up, turning towards the woman, "Hello there!" The lady readjusted the bags in her arms and smiled at my mom "this wouldn't happen to be cabin 28 would it?" She asked, looking a bit overwhelmed. "As a matter of fact it is", my mom said, "feel free to put your things down, we just got here too". The woman sighed in relief, "thank god, it feels like we've been searching for decades. My name is Trisha" she extended a hand towards my mom, "Hinawa." Mom said, shaking her hand. "It's nice to meet you." Trisha looked at me, "You must be staying here too, nice to meet you..." She trailed off, "Lucas. Nice to meet you too." _she seems friendly_ I thought, however it occurred to me that she was alone. Surely she has a son, most likely my roommate for the summer... _where is he?_ I quickly scanned the room to make sure he hadn't entered unannounced, but seeing as he was nowhere in the facility I raised my eyebrows in confusion. Trisha took notice "You must be wondering where your roommate is. Last I checked he was on the phone with his father but he should be here any minute." _If he is anything like his mom he shouldn't be so bad_ I thought, trying to stay optimistic. I really had no idea what lay ahead of me.

"Mom?"

I turned towards the sound to see a figure standing in the doorway, around the same height as me and— oh god. Oh no. No.

Standing at the front of the cabin was the boy in the striped shirt and red cap.

* * *

**A/N:** We had AP testing the other day for US history and I ended my essay on communism with "In the words of Ronald Reagan, 'damn you, Sputnik' ", I think it's going to go down as the greatest essay in the history of the fucking world.


	4. Chapter 4

"Hey there!" I heard my mom say to the boy in the doorway. I watched him as he walked inside.  
"Ness, there you are!" his mom said "what did your dad say?"  
"He told me to have fun at camp and that he put 30 dollars into my account for now" the black-haired boy said, adjusting his cap. _Dang, 30 bucks? Living in the lap of luxury no doubt_.

"Ness, introduce yourself to your new cabin mate. You two will be staying together for the summer" the boy walked to me, "hi", he said, extending a hand, "my name is Ness, nice to meet you." I took his hand and shook it with all of the enthusiasm of a dead fish "Lucas. You too."  
Now that I got to see him up close, he looked the same age as me, black hair, violet eyes... weird, slightly tanned skin, not much taller than me but a little more... I don't know, sporty looking?  
We stood there in somewhat of an awkward silence before my mom decided to speak up, "Ok boys, well, now that you've met, I'm sure we can trust you to finish unpacking. Parents have to leave soon so I'm going to go get your father, Lucas, and you can come now or you and Claus can meet us at the entrance to say goodbye later."  
"I'm gonna have to shove off too, Ness" Trisha said "I still need to drive your sister to Sunrise camp, so I can't stay to help you unpack."  
Ness and I both nodded at our respective parents as they finished, Ness went over to hug his mom goodbye and I followed mine out to go meet with Claus and Dad.

Ness. Ness Ness Ness Ness Ness. The boy's name is Ness. I sighed. What the hell was I going to do? There was no way I could get along with that guy. I mean, I know we'd only exchanged like 4 words and my first impression of him was from a distance, but I like to think I'm a pretty good judge of character, and this was one I really didn't want to be around.  
"Just try and get along."  
Huh? I looked towards my mom, both of us walking up the hill, "I know you don't like him, but just try to get along". I gazed at my feet, "You could tell, huh."  
"I saw that handshake, it was like watching an unenthusiastic train wreck." She chuckled.

"But I don't like him. I was unenthusiastic for a reason, you know."

"You only just met him, how can you say you don't like him?" She paused, "I think he seems nice."

"Mom, you think everyone seems nice."

"You got me." Mom snapped her fingers in fake defeat, "but if you at least try to be nice, you'll have a better time. You can hang out with Claus all you want, but bonding and making new friends is what camp is all about. I think you'll enjoy it more too."  
I grumbled as we walked up to Claus' cabin, mom knocking on the doorframe despite the door already being wide open.  
"Hello?" Mom called. Claus popped his head into view, followed by a shorter boy with a red cap and bandana.  
"Hey mom, hey Lucas, come in" Claus said, waving us inside.  
Walking in, the boy in the bandana smiled at me. He had jet black hair, a red cap, red socks, a striped shirt, and dark circles under his eyes that convinced me that he hasn't slept in at least 4 days.  
Claus walked over to him and gestured to the boy, "Mom, Lucas, this is my friend, Ninten." _Friend is probably a strong word,_ I thought. "Ninten, this is my mom Hinawa, and my brother Lucas."  
Ninten waved respectably, "nice to meet you"  
"Nice to meet you too" mom and I both said in unison, her tone distinctly more cheerful than mine.  
"I'm so glad you two are friends already! I hope Claus doesn't cause you too much trouble." She said jokingly, "Speaking of which, Claus, where's your father?"  
"I think he's already at the entrance. Either that or the registration office."  
"Well we should go to the entrance, he'll end up going there either way." She turned to Ninten "it was very nice meeting you, Ninten, I hope you and Claus get along well."  
"Thanks", he nodded and we went on our way.

We met dad at the entrance, we said our tearful goodbyes, and then it was over. My parents were gone and I was stuck in a camp with 100 other boys for the next 2 months.

I was not going to survive.

* * *

_**A/N:**_ I'm gonna be in Europe for my mom's 50th birthday for a while so updates will be... decreased. Well it's not like I'm updating much anyways haha, sorry. Anyways, on a slightly happier note, I've noticed a small influx in well written fics for this pairing, mine not included heh. It's a very nice development. I've been browsing on here for quite a while and let me tell you it's been a long time coming.


	5. The fifth one

By the time parents left it was already late afternoon. I reached into my pocket and took out a schedule from the main office which read:

8:30: wake up call

9:30: breakfast

10:15: Activity time

1:25: lunch

2:30: Free time

4:30: Activity time

7:00: dinner

8:00: all camp assembly

9:00: Free time/ Night activity

10:00: All campers required to be in cabins by this time

11:00: lights out

- All campers are required to be punctual to events and assemblies, if you have any questions feel free to ask a counselor.

It was a straightforward schedule at least, which was all I could really ask for. I figured I'd learn what "activity time" was later, so I shoved the note back in my pocket and started walking back to my cabin to unpack.

I was stopped in my tracks by a screeching sound that came from the speakers overhead followed by a muffled voice like the one you hear right when you get on a roller coaster, "Attention all campers, you are required to meet at the event center behind the cabins at 5:00 today. Maps are located around camp if you get lost". That gave me about an hour and a half before I had to go anywhere, so I figured I would chill with Claus until it was time.

I actually caught sight of Claus walking down and jogged to catch up with him, "once I'm done unpacking can I come hang out with you?" I asked.

"Yeah, sure, I don't see why not"

Satisfied with that answer, I walked past him to my cabin, intent on unpacking as fast as possible to avoid spending unnecessary time with anyone that wasn't my brother.

Ness must've been somewhere else because the cabin was empty when I walked inside. I let out a sigh of relief and decided to use the time to myself to explore my new living situation. It was a simple one room square cabin. One bed on the left against the front wall, the other, perpendicular against the right side of the front wall, the door leading outside between them. Next to each bed on either wall was a fairly large dresser and near the back was a small table and chair. I made my way to the bathroom next to it, finding a normal shower and toilet with a sink in between them.

I walked back to my bed on the right, took out my heaping pile of clothes, and shoved them in the dresser next to the wall. The dresser didn't close all the way with the clothes inside but whatever. I kicked my suitcase under the bed and unfurled my sleeping bag and pillow onto the mattress. I noticed something then.

It was quiet.

Somewhat ominously quiet but... it was nice. If this place had a TV I didn't have a roommate I probably would've loved it. A quiet, well lit box of solitude with ballpoint pen names carved into the wood and dust in every corner.

I sighed.

It would've been perfect.

I shook myself out of my daydreaming and left the dusty cabin. It was nice in there but not worth it to stay if it mean running into Ness.

And speak of the god damned devil.

Ness was walking down the hill when I left the cabin, so I did what any sane person would do and pretended that I didn't see him. I pointed my eyes to the ground and shut out the outside world as I walked up the hill. I guess that was sort of a stupid move though, because the direction I was walking in was the same one he was coming from. But I had made my bed, (metaphorically and literally) so I had to lay in it.

"Hey" he said. I jumped but I kept my eyes down, I was not actually expecting him to start up any kind of conversation.

"...hey"

"...Is the door unlocked?" He gestured to the cabin, "I was gonna go unpack."

"Yeah."

And with that, we went on our way.

~.~

After that... uncomfortable encounter, I reached Claus' cabin and knocked on the door. Claus opened it with a "yo" and gestured for me to go inside. When I went in I was greeted by Ninten who was making paper rings. The whole ceiling was actually covered by red paper chains and other crafted doohickeys. It gave the cabin a personality. I liked it a lot.

Claus noticed me looking around. He said, "We're just doing a bit of decorating for the place. Ninten's making them and I'm hanging them up".

"Where did you get the paper?" I asked.

"Ninten brought it. He's like, the origami master."

Ninten spoke up, "I can verify that I am, indeed, the origami master." He paused, "if it bugs you, though, you can take them down."

"I already said it's fine. It makes the place less boring." Claus said resolutely. I nodded in agreement.

"Ok..." Ninten smiled quietly. "Thanks."

Claus and Ninten went back to crafting after that so I figured I would take a nap in order to kill some time. I made my way over to Claus' bed, flopping down face first on it. I wasn't too comfortable having Ninten there, being someone I'd just met that day, but having my brother there softened the tense feelings I had. A stream of light entered through one of the small windows near the ceiling, the dust danced around it in delicate movements. I closed my eyes and drifted to sleep, my last memory being the two voices talking quietly behind me.

~.~

"Dude, wake up"

I groggily opened my eyes fully expecting to be in my own room at home and was pretty god damn disoriented when I wasn't. My senses came back to me suddenly and I realized that instead of home, I was in a dusty room hours away from there. All of my disappointed feelings pooled in my gut and I miserably shoved my face back into my drool covered pillow.

"Lucas, come on, we have to go."

I heard that voice again which unmistakably came from my brother. I groaned and shoved my face further into the mattress. "I don't wanna get up" I said, muffled but I guess Claus understood because the next thing he did was tip the bed over. I yelped and landed right on my hands and knees, which, I will tell you, hurt like hell and gave me at /least/ 5 million splinters.

"Dude. Lame." I said, looking as displeased as humanly possible.

"Yeah, well knowing your sleep pattern it was either this or ice water in your face and I didn't have any ice. Anyways, get up we have to go", Claus said.

"Ugh, why?" I droned.

"Because it's already 5:00 and we were supposed to be at some event thing by now."

My eyes widened "Oh shit, really?" I hate not being punctual, I get it from my mom. "Dude, why didn't you wake me up earlier?"

"I /tried/ but you're such a god damn heavy sleeper that eventually I had to tell Ninten to go without me so he wouldn't be late."

I looked around and lo and behold, Ninten was nowhere to be found. "Huh. Well I guess we should go." I stood up from the floor and headed for the door before I was blocked by a serious looking Claus with his arms crossed.

He said "Normally, I would let you go out like this because it's absolutely hilarious, but I know how you are in new situations and I feel it is my brotherly duty to save you from that embarrassment."

I gave him a puzzled look.

"Dude, fix your hair".

I looked up thinking that I would be able to see my hair without a mirror, but it was a bit more impossible than I had first thought. I went into the bathroom and when I looked in the mirror, I had never been more grateful for Claus' mercy on my soul. You might think that my ultra stylish hair just happens naturally. But let me tell you gravity is a cruel and unforgiving mistress, and if I don't have all the proper tools I need to style my hair, what you pretty much get is a reverse mullet. It's awful, trust me. Claus doesn't style his hair. In fact, I don't even know what the hell even goes on with Claus' hair. It's like, it doesn't part anywhere, but then there's like a part that stands up and, well, it's confusing as hell. His hair is seriously a fucking mystery.

I looked at my bed head trying to think of how to fix this without hairspray or gel or... damn do they even have a comb in here? I opened a drawer in the cabinet beneath the mirror and what I saw was heavens gates opening in an array of holy light. I had everything I needed to style my hair. I wanted to cry it was so absolutely beautiful. _These must be Ninten's_ I thought, although it didn't make much sense as to why he would have so many hair products if he just covered his hair up with a hat. _He must not wear it all the time_, I figured. A quick "Come on, man, hurry up" from Claus stopped my dawdling and I quickly and precisely styled my hair into its usual shape.

"Ok, let's go." I said walking out of the bathroom.

Claus rolled his eyes "Jesus, finally."

We walked out together and towards the back of the cabins and the event center.

"Who's hair spray and stuff is that in the bathroom?" I asked quizzically.

"That's, I uh... that's uh, that's Ninten's. Yeah."

I paused. "Dude, are those **yours**?"

"No. Nope. Nah." Claus said, in the most defensive voice possible.

"Oh my god. All these years trying to figure out how the hell your hair worked and you /made/ it that way. Unbelievable."

He shoved me unenthusiastically, "Shut up."

I laughed "Dude also, you're like the worst liar ever."

He smirked "Only to you."

I was gonna make fun of him some more, but unfortunately we had already made it to the event center. I guess making fun of Claus would have to wait for another time.

There was no one outside the center which would've surprised me if it wasn't already 5:15, so me and Claus quietly made our way inside. What we saw when we went in was a stage with a rising floor of stairs opposite of it where all of the kids were sitting. I guess they hadn't started anything yet because it was loud as hell with all of them chatting away with each other. It also didn't look like there was a seating arrangement so Claus and I sat down on the very back step. We were given a curious look by some blonde freckled kid in glasses, sitting to my left. When I looked towards him I saw he was sitting next to another kid with black hair in a braid and next to that kid was... Ness. I turned my head away at the speed of light, accidentally slamming it into Claus'. "Ow, dude, what the fuck?" Claus hissed angrily.

"Sorry, sorry". I whispered back. Claus glared at me and I gestured with my eyes towards Ness. Claus looked at him, then back at me and raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"Dude, that's my roommate." I whispered, hurriedly.

Claus' eyes widened in realization. "Oh".

"Yeah"

Claus looked back over at him, "I don't know why you're so afraid of him. He looks like he just walked out of a ball pit at Chuck e. Cheese and all of the colors stuck to his clothes."

I snorted, but I wasn't gonna let that first part get by, "I'm not afraid of him, I just don't like him", I whispered indignantly.

"Why?"

"I just don't."

"You see, man, this is why I already have friends and you're stuck hanging out with me."

I made a displeased noise in the back of my throat and looked towards the stage where one of the counselors had begun speaking.

"Ok, campers! Who's ready to have fun?!"

What erupted from the audience was half groans and half fake enthusiasm which ended up with pretty much the wet napkin of cheers, aside from those few kids who were actually /excited/ and cheering near the front of the stage. God I hate those kids.

"Alright, well let's get started, the first thing we're going to do today is tell you a little about the camp, and then we're going to move outside to give you all groups who you'll be doing activities with for the rest of the summer."

I groaned. _Claus isn't going to be in my group I'm going to actually die. I am going to dissolve into the atmosphere and die_.

"Ok campers the first thing we need to set are the basic rules." The counselor on stage said, "If anyone forgets these, you can come to the main office. There's a rule book that you can use to refresh your memory."

I was getting really bored already and kind of zoned out of whatever the guy on stage was saying. I picked up small pieces like "No food in cabins" and "No going off camp grounds" which seemed sort of implied. My ears perked up at one rule, though. "There will be no cavorting with other campers, and failure to follow this rule will result in immediate expulsion from the camp." Expulsion seemed like kind of a weird word to use but that wasn't the main point. The ultimate meaning of the rule was "don't get with other campers or you're being sent home". I didn't really worry about it. I wasn't gonna do any "cavorting" with anyone. I might be gay but I'm not desperate enough to get with anyone in this god forsaken place. But the rule bugged me. I know the boy scouts have some sort of strict anti-gay agenda but I mean summer camp? You're putting 500 adolescent boys on the same grounds and you don't expect anything to happen? I guess they /did/ expect something to happen or else that rule probably wouldn't exist. I laughed to myself, _I bet someone's gonna get kicked out by the end of the summer_.

After the counselor finished his monologue of rules, of which I picked up about four, he stepped aside and another counselor took the mic. He started to talk about the history of the camp or something, I don't know, I wasn't paying attention, I was actually looking around for the counselor that talked to me when I first got here. I think Duster was his name? I spotted him leaning against the wall on the left completely knocked out but still standing. I muffled a laugh, I guess this whole thing was really boring for him too.

After about 5 millenniums the guy at the mic finished his speech and we were all told to move out to the field to get groups.

When we got there, all of the counselors were spread around the field holding up signs with different names.

It probably would've been a more productive system if the names weren't written so small that everyone had to crowd around each sign to find out where they were placed but what do I know?

Claus found his group and I walked to where he was to see if the gods had shown me their mercy and put me in the same one. I looked at the sign. Nope. Claus must've seen the disappointment on my face because he put his hand on my back and gave me a pitying look. I sighed and looked on.

Ninten must've seen me too (he and Claus were in the same group) and pointed me where I was supposed to go. I looked to my left where he pointed and saw Duster waving holding up a sign. I walked over to him and his group with a half-smile.

"Hey, glad you could join us." He said when I arrived. I looked at all the other guys in my group and froze when I saw Ness there. God dammit. God fucking dammit. I sighed and sat down on the damp grass with everyone else. When the last kid arrived duster started speaking.

"Ok, hey everyone, I'm your group leader, Duster. Pretty much what we're gonna be doing together is group activities every other day and stuff like overnight camping and competitive games every week. Feel free to talk to me about whatever you need or if you have any medical stuff I need to know about" he said. "Ok so were supposed to have a group name, most of the counselors already decided on one, but the one I picked doesn't seem like it's super cool", he smiled, "So I thought of a couple options for you guys to pick. Number one: the staples" everyone in the group shook their head. He continued, "Ok so not that one. Number 2: cheese platter." The group laughed but no one was willing to have that name except me and I didn't voice my opinion. "Ok, well I have one more that I hope you guys will say yes to. 'The thieves' ". Some quiet deliberation between group members ended with nods of agreement. "Ok so our group name is 'the thieves'. I'm trusting you all not to take that literally", he laughed. I smiled. I might not be with Claus, but I got the coolest counselor on campus and that counts for something.

After some more explanation of camp activities, we broke apart to go eat dinner at the mess hall. I found Claus talking to the two guys we were sitting next to in the event center. When I caught up to them, their conversation suddenly stopped and they all looked at me. Definitely not the most comfortable thing I've ever experienced. After a few seconds I decided to break the silence. "Uh.. hi." I am a poet and no one can tell me otherwise. "Hi" "Hello", the two of them replied. I raised my eyebrows at Claus, expecting him to introduce me to his friends. "Oh." He said, realizing what I was doing, "This is Jeff", gesturing to the blonde boy "and this is... Poo." He said gesturing to the boy with the black braided hair. Before I reprimand Claus for being such an ass to someone he just met and calling them poo both of the boys said "Nice to meet you". I guess... Poo didn't really mind being called that by my brother but I'd have to figure out his real name before I called him out. "I'm Lucas. Nice to meet you too".

We all started walking to the mess hall when I whispered in Claus' ear "dude what's that guy's real name?"

"Jeff."

I elbowed him "No! The other guy"

Claus laughed. "His name is Poo."

I was about to elbow him again before he stopped me. "No, dude I'm serious. He's like foreign or something."

I lowered my arm and raised my eyebrows. "Wow. That sucks. I'd hate to think of all the shit he's gone through with a name like that."

Claus laughed.

I smacked my forehead at my unintentional pun, "You know what I mean." I said frustratedly.

"Yeah I know what you mean. I wouldn't worry about it, though. He seems pretty tough."

"I guess so."

We met up with Ninten at the entrance of the mess hall. It was a buffet style set up with kid cuisine-esque trays. The dinner that night was pizza which is hard to mess up but they managed to do it somehow. After we got our food we looked around for a place to sit. Unfortunately I wasn't in charge of finding us a table so we ended up sitting where Claus wanted to sit, which was with Jeff and Poo, and, of course, Ness. Because there was just no way he couldn't be there.

Dinner went pretty normally though, most of us just getting to know each other.

"So, Poo, you're not from here are you?" Claus asked. I was curious as to where he was from as well. Somewhere Eastern definitely.

"No. I'm from New York."

"But you moved to New York from where?"

"My mother's uterus." Poo said blankly.

"...Poo's parents are from Tibet" Jeff said.

Claus and I made a noise of realization before Claus asked, "How about you, Ninten, where are you from?"

"Me?" Ninten responded, "I'm from the middle of ass licking nowhere."

"Ninten and I are from Ohio." Ness said, "So yeah pretty much."

"Wait, you two know each other?" I asked.

"Yeah, Ninten and I are cousins, isn't that right, short stack?" Ness snickered.

"Ness, I hate you with every inch of my body." Ninten said.

"I'm actually from England, myself" Jeff stated.

"Really? But you don't have an accent." Claus said

"I moved when I was about 5 so my accent has faded over the years."

"You can still here it sometimes, if you listen closely." Poo interjected.

The rest of the dinner went on like that, Claus explained that he and I are actually from California and have never moved, which kept the conversation up until the bell rang and someone told us that the assembly was cancelled and to go back to our cabins for the night. We all left the mess hall, said our goodbyes, and I was left to walk with Ness. Alone.

"So, you're from California?" Ness asked as we were walking down the hill, "that's cool, are you from here specifically?"

"No, I'm from Los Angeles." I said dryly

"Wow!" Ness smiled, "do you know any celebrities?"

"Um, I saw Bill Murray at the store one time." I said, hesitantly

"Dude that's so cool! I've never met any celebrities before, but I've always wanted to meet Steve Buscemi."

"What? Why?" I asked, confused.

"I don't know, I guess I just want to know how he made it so far as an actor with such bad teeth."

I snorted but caught myself, "I guess that makes sense."

We made it to the cabin, myself feeling a little less uncomfortable thanks to the small talk. C_asual conversation does wonders doesn't it?_ I sat down on my bed and grabbed my gameboy from my suitcase. I have trouble sleeping at night, especially in new places so I decided early on that I was gonna play until I passed out. A good end to an admittedly not horrible day.

"Hey, is that a gameboy advance?"

I groaned internally but nodded my head. "Yeah."

"Oh man, I didn't think anyone played those anymore."

I was about to snap back an insult for that statement but before I could Ness pulled a GBA out of his suitcase too.

"You wanna play together? I have four swords." Ness said wiggling the game cartridge in his hand along with a connecting cable.

I wanted to say no so badly but... his smile was so genuine. I didn't like him but... I didn't want to let him down either.

I connected my gameboy and we started playing. And you know what?

It was fun.

* * *

**_A/N:_** why haven't I been updating? It's not because I'm busy. It is because I am a lazy asshole and I got my PC running to play DRAMAtical murder. But almost 4k words this chapter! Wow! Did anyone catch my parks and rec or South Park reference? Well if you didn't, just know that there will be many more. Look forward to it.

PS: if anyone's going to Japan expo in San Mateo next month, hmu, I'm gonna be cosplaying lucas, mysterion (South Park) and maybe Mihashi (oofuri) and I'd love to meet some fellow earthbound and especially nescas fans!


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